NFIB Weekly News
Leading the News
Preparing for Hurricane Milton (10/07/2024)
Small businesses still cleaning up from Hurricane Helene are bracing for another massive storm
The National Hurricane Center on Monday predicted that Hurricane Milton will become a Category 5 storm before making landfall along the Gulf Coast near Tampa. The storm will be the second major hurricane to hit the state in as many weeks.
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Lawmakers Urged to Stop Massive Tax Hike on Small Businesses (09/26/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 26, 2024) – The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization, hosted a Capitol Hill press conference during its 2024 Small Business Tax Deduction Summit featuring NFIB President Brad Close, Senator Steve Daines (R-MT), and small business owners who called for passage of the Main Street Tax Certainty Act to make the 20% Small Business Deduction permanent for America’s 33 million small businesses.
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Small Businesses Applaud Passage of Resolution to Repeal EPA Emissions Mandate (09/23/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 23, 2024) – The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization, commends lawmakers for passing H.J.Res. 136 to repeal the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) light- and medium-duty vehicle emissions standards rule. NFIB sent a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives in support of the legislation, which was considered an NFIB Key Vote for the 118th Congress.
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NFIB Awards Guardian of Small Business Award to U.S. Senators (09/19/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 19, 2024) – The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization, presented the prestigious Guardian of Small Business Award to Members of the United States Senate.
NFIB’s Guardian of Small Business Award is reserved for lawmakers who vote consistently with small businesses on key issues identified by small business owners. As the voice of small business, NFIB is the only business organization whose policy positions are established by NFIB members directly.
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NFIB Awards Guardian of Small Business Award to Members of Congress (09/18/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 18, 2024) – The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization, presented the prestigious Guardian of Small Business Award to Members of the United States House of Representatives.
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NFIB President Brad Close Discusses the 20% Small Business Deduction on the Lars Larson Radio Show (09/17/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 17, 2024) – NFIB President Brad Close joined The Lars Larson Show to discuss the importance of the 20% Small Business Deduction for Main Street businesses. Close explains how the Small Business Deduction empowers middle class small business owners to grow their businesses, hire employees and raise wages, and give back to their communities.
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Business Climate
NEW NFIB SURVEY: Main Street Uncertainty Reaches All-Time High (10/08/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Oct. 8, 2024) – The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose by 0.3 points in September to 91.5. This is the 33rd consecutive month below the 50-year average of 98. The Uncertainty Index rose 11 points to 103, the highest reading recorded. Fifty-one percent of owners reported capital outlays in the last six months, down five points from August. Meanwhile, the number of owners reporting inventory gains fell four points to a net negative 13% (seasonally adjusted), the lowest reading since June 2020.
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NFIB Jobs Report: Main Street Job Openings Fall to Three-Year Low (10/03/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Oct. 3, 2024) – NFIB’s September jobs report found that 34% (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in September, down six points from August and the lowest reading since January 2021.
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Small Business Owners Converge on Capitol Hill to Stop a Massive Tax Hike on Small Businesses (09/24/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 24, 2024) – The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization, is hosting its 2024 Small Business Deduction Summit this week on Capitol Hill. Small business owners are traveling to the nation’s capital to share why Congress must make the 20% Small Business Deduction permanent for America’s 33 million small businesses.
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NEW NFIB SURVEY: Small Business Optimism Dips in August (09/10/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 10, 2024) – The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index fell by 2.5 points in August to 91.2, erasing all of July’s gain. This is the 32nd consecutive month below the 50-year average of 98. The Uncertainty Index rose to 92, its highest level since October 2020. Inflation remains the top issue among small business owners, with 24% of owners reporting it as their top small business operating issue, down one point from July.
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NFIB Files Amicus Brief Challenging New Evidentiary Standard (08/20/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Aug. 20, 2024) – NFIB filed an amicus brief in the case E.M.D Sales, Inc. v. Faustino Sanchez Carrera at the United States Supreme Court. The case considers what standard of proof should be used to determine if an exemption to employers’ overtime pay requirements applies under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). NFIB filed the brief with the U.S. Chamber Litigation Center.
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Inflation remained the number one operating issue for small business owners in July (08/13/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 13, 2024) – The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose 2.2 points in July to 93.7, the highest reading since February 2022. However, this is the 31st consecutive month below the 50-year average of 98. Inflation remains the top issue among small business owners, with 25% reporting it as their single most important problem in operating their business, up four points from June.
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Wages and Benefits
NFIB Testifies on Employer-Sponsored Health Benefits Before U.S. House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee (09/11/2024)
NFIB’s Holly Wade spoke on the value of employer-provided health coverage for Main Street businesses and the U.S. economy, as well as the burden of rising costs on small businesses
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NFIB Jobs Report: Main Street Job Growth Stalls in August (09/06/2024)
ALBANY, NY (Sept. 6, 2024) – NFIB’s August jobs report found that 40% (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in August, up two points from July. Labor quality as the top small business operating problem rose two points from July to 21%, the highest level reported since January of this year.
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NFIB Jobs Report: Main Street Compensation Plans Fall As Labor Costs Grow (08/01/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Aug. 1, 2024) – NFIB’s July jobs report found a seasonally adjusted net 33% of small business owners reported raising compensation in July, down five points from last month and the lowest reading since April 2021. A net 18% (seasonally adjusted) plan to raise compensation in the next three months, down four points from June.
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New Freelance Worker Mandates Go Into Effect in Illinois (07/26/2024)
The Freelance Worker Protection Act went into effect in Illinois on July 1.
The act regulates the relationship between non-construction independent contractors (“freelance workers”) and their contracting entities.
Under the new law, contracting entities must provide freelance workers with written contracts. The written contract must be provided either physically or electronically to the freelance worker.
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NFIB Monthly Jobs Report: Job Openings on Main Street Fall in June (07/04/2024)
Small businesses continue to struggle to find qualified workers. WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 4, 2024) – NFIB’s June jobs report found solid employment hiring plans among small business owners, but overall unsuccessful attempts to hire additional workers. A seasonally adjusted 37% of all small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in their current period, down five points from May.
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NFIB Jobs Report: Small Business Compensation Plans Fall to Lowest Level Since 2021 (06/06/2024)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 6, 2024) – According to NFIB’s monthly jobs report, a net 18% (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners plan to raise compensation in the next three months in May, down three points from last month and the lowest reading since March 2021. Seasonally adjusted, a net 37% of owners reported raising compensation, down one point from April but historically very high.
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